First quarter passenger traffic is up at LAX, and flat at Ontario airport

Passenger traffic at Los Angeles International Airport increased nearly 6 percent in the first quarter of 2014 compared to the prior year, according to statistics released Friday by Los Angeles World Airports.

International passenger volume rose from about 4 million in the first three months of last year to about 4.3 million this year. Domestic passenger traffic rose 5 percent, from about 11 million to 11.6 million.

LAX accommodated about 66.7 million passengers in 2013, just missing its all-time high of 67.3 million set in 2000. If the year’s trend continues, LAX could have its all-time best year for passenger traffic in 2014.

Meanwhile, the situation has stabilized at the other passenger airport managed by Los Angeles World Airports, L.A./Ontario International Airport. Last year, the airport accommodated 3.9 million passengers, a drop of 47 percent from 2007. The decline has been steady — passenger traffic has fallen each year since 2007 — but it appears the airport may have just about hit its nadir.

Ontario’s airport handled 948,437 passengers in the year’s first quarter, down just slightly from 950,634 in 2013.

The city of Ontario wants to gain control of the airport and has sued Los Angeles. In court papers, lawyers for Ontario argue that Los Angeles has mismanaged the facility.